Dinnertime: Our Grocery List

In the last post we discussed the meal list.

Those meals contain ingredients that can be used with a bunch of the other meals on the list. That fact, combined with how/where I grocery shop, helps us save money!

Here is what our normal grocery list looks like:

FYI - This is limited to ONLY dinner items from our meal list. Also, I don't buy each of these items monthly - items like dried spices, olive oil, meats and grains are bought less frequently.

We save money by:

• Having a meal list that utilizes a lot of the same "staple" ingredients.
• Purchasing big ticket items (like meat and veggies we use weekly) at wholesale clubs.
• Buying in bulk and freezing extras.
• Buying generic.The grocery store's version of whole wheat pasta or tomato sauce is nutritionally the same as the name brand version and tastes the same! This has sometimes cut my grocery bill by a third or more!!!
• Buying frozen veggies when fresh aren't in season.
• Signing up for the grocery store's membership discounts.
• Stocking up on items on sale.
• I am not a coupon clipper, because most coupons are for processed foods or for things we don't eat; however if there is a coupon I can find, I use it! I go to Southern Savers, and Coupons.com to find them.
• Going to a few stores to get all our groceries -  Trader Joe's carries a lot of speciality items like sun-dried tomatoes and goat cheese at cheaper prices than a regular grocery store. Aldi is also good for discounts on speciality items. Costco is great for bulk items and Food Lion is good for the basics.

Again, I just wanted to give you an idea of the items we buy monthly for our meal list.

Next Tuesday we'll start with the recipes! Can't wait!